By Mustafa Melih Ahishali

ISTANBUL

Exports of Iran’s famed carpets have ceased to the U.S. since Washington slapped Tehran with new sanctions, the country’s handmade carpet-weavers’ union said on Sunday.

Citing Abdullahi Bahrami, president of the union, the semi-official Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) said in a report that 35 percent of Iran’s carpet exports were made to the U.S.

"We have not been able to export to this country [the U.S.] after Nov. 6 because of the sanctions,” Bahrami said.

He added that Iranian exporters are hoping to compensate for this loss with increased efforts in Russia, China and South Africa.

The Persian rug is a big business in the Islamic Republic.

According to estimates by the Iranian Industry Ministry, Iran produces around 400 tons of hand-woven carpets annually, the sweeping majority of which are exported to world countries.

One of Iran’s top exports, the rug business employs around 2.5 million people in the country.

“Iran earns some $400 million through hand-woven carpets,” Firiste Destpak, the head of Iranian National Carpet Center, said.

The carpet business dates back to the founding of the Persian Empire more than 2,500 years ago, in which master weavers have passed down their skills for generations.